Charming a Golden Goddess
by Ace Of Cupid
Summary: When Blondie notices that Cupid is feeling down about her crush, she tries her best to cheer her up. After all, she would do anything for the young goddess she has grown to care for so much. But a simple gesture of comfort can quickly turn into something that's not quite so simple.
1. Locket for Your Thoughts

It stung. Seeing the one she loved so much swoon over another girl. It was like an over-used movie cliche.

And she hated it.

It grew darker as the sun began to disappear behind the hill Cupid was staring off toward. Despite her usual positive and happy attitude, she couldn't even bring herself to stand and walk inside. At least not yet. She needed a break; fresh air.

"Cupid!" A voice called from behind her.

Cupid shifted to find that the voice belonged to Blondie Lockes, her perky roommate. "Oh. Hey, Blondie." She strained her voice to imitate a more joyful tone then faced back toward the setting sun, knowing fully well that Blondie had been wondering where she was.

"What are you doing out here? It's almost time for curfew."

"I just wanted to …" The pinkette looked down at her lap. Keeping her composer was proving to be difficult right now.

Blondie seemed to sense this and her expression softened. Taking a seat beside Cupid, she looked toward the fading rays of light and let out a content sigh.

A few minutes of silence passed before she piped up, "It really is beautiful. Isn't it?"

Without looking up, Cupid nodded.

Her smile fading, the blonde looked at her friend carefully; as if she was currently reading her every thought and emotion.

"What's wrong, Cupid?"

There it was. The outreach Cupid had been expecting. It's not like she could tell Blondie the truth though. Right?

After all, as the adopted daughter of Eros, she was supposed to help bring others to their true loves. Even if that meant sacrificing her own love for the sake of someone else's happiness.

"It's .. It's nothing."

"You can tell me." Blondie assured.

Tucking a strand of her pink curls behind her ear, Cupid took a deep breath and stood up. "Actually, I was about to go inside."

Despite the hard look Blondie was giving her, she pretended not to notice and refused to make eye contact.

"We wouldn't want to miss curfew. Right?" Cupid turned and made her way back inside without waiting for a response from her roommate.

She didn't feel like she could make it through a conversation without crying. Let alone a conversation about her colliding feelings.

* * *

"Cupid? Cupid?"

A light nudging awoke Cupid from what felt like a restless sleep.

She blinked a few times to make out the figure of Blondie, standing beside her bed in the dark room.

"Blondie? What do you need?" She pushed herself into more of a sitting position and rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes.

Blondie beamed a smile and silently held out her hand to Cupid. In response, Cupid merely blinked as the other teen waited for her to take hold.

Figuring Blondie wasn't going to let her sleep, and with her own hand twitching with hesitance, Cupid took the offer only to have Blondie yank her out of bed.

"Blondie! W-what are you doing!?"

"Shh! Just come with me! You'll see!" She giggled in a half-whisper.

After running through the halls in a hurried (But hushed) manner, they arrived outside of the school. Nothing appeared to be unusual or out of place so Cupid was a bit perplexed, but curious nevertheless.

Blondie giggled again. "Close your eyes!"

"Uh, okay. But why?" Her brightly pink colored eyes closed. Cupid's exhaustion grew at the same time as her curiosity.

She felt something cold and small wrap gently around her neck as Blondie fiddled with the back of the item. And then with a quiet "Hmph" of satisfaction, Blondie gave the go-ahead for her to open her eyes.

Cupid's eyes immediately made contact with a mirror reflection of herself. It didn't take but a second for her to notice the new piece of jewelry that hung from her neck.

It was small- and simple- but beautiful. It was just a small chain with a shiny, silver heart locket dangling on the end.

She didn't see why Blondie couldn't just have given her the locket inside instead of dragging her away from the comfort of her bed and into the chill of the night air but she smiled anyway.

"Thank you, Blondie. I love it." She said in a soft voice with an obvious hint of sweetness; not an uncommon thing for Cupid's voice.

"That's not even the best part." Blondie gave a mischievous wink and smiled even brighter.

Cupid couldn't help but laugh a bit. "Then what is the best part?"

Leaning closer to her ear, Blondie whispered so quietly that even Cupid could barely hear it. "I stole it from Dexter's room."

Cupid remained still for a couple seconds but as soon as the words set in she quickly stepped backward, unintentionally pushing Blondie in the process.

"You stole it!?"

Blondie laughed.

"I noticed how down you've been recently so I wanted to give you a little piece of him." The bright blonde explained. The smile on her face getting more cheerful with every passing minute.

"You know I like him?" Cupid let her gaze slip to the locket she was wearing. There was something oddly comforting about it. It almost excited her.

"Of course I do! I've seen the way you look at him. It's obvious!"

The pinkette hadn't even noticed the blush that was filling her own pale complexion until now. It only further embarrassed her but in the end it was just Blondie. She was like her best friend.

Now she was beginning to think she should have told her to begin with.

As Blondie's voice faded, nothing but silence filled the space between the two girls. Blondie still had the same grin on her face while Cupid couldn't help but smile- if only the tiniest bit- to herself.

"Dexter's room, huh?" Cupid questioned with an almost playful look taking over her perfectly proportioned facial features.

Blondie gave a swift nod as she glanced down at the same locket. "I think it was going to be for Raven."

It felt like someone had just shot Cupid through the back with an arrow. And it wasn't an arrow of love.

It wasn't exactly a new feeling but it didn't grow any less affective. Even the slightest mention of Raven was enough to send her into a spiral of over-thinking.

What did Cupid expect? That Dexter got it for himself? Of course he got it for Raven! Her hand twitched slightly with agitation. "T-then why did you steal it? We need to put it back!"

The short-lived light mood vanished. Blondie's smile vanished just as quickly.

"Are you mad?" Blondie asked. She looked genuinely surprised.

Cupid didn't mean to come across as angry. She knew her roommate meant well but she was feeling more heated as the conversation went on.

"N-no. I'm sorry, Blondie. I'm not mad." Cupid's eyes darted from the ground, to the school, and back to the ground. "And thank you. For the necklace, I mean."

Without a response, Blondie stepped forward and wrapped her arms around the goddess for a comforting hug. "You're welcome, Cupid."

Cupid returned the hug then took a deep breath, taking in the scent of Blondie's long, golden locks.

What would she have done without a friend like Blondie?

"Now," Blondie began, "It's a shame you're going to put it back."

It was obvious her friend was teasing but Cupid knew she had no choice in giving it back or not. It was the right thing to do. But she really did wish she could keep it. If only for a day. It meant more to her than she would think it would.

After the two girls broke off the hug, they made their way back inside and down the halls. Once they reached their room Cupid told Blondie to go on ahead and go to bed so she could have a minute to herself.

Blondie smiled sweetly and nodded in understanding. Then she disappeared into the bedroom.

With a sigh of exhaustion- or relief; she couldn't tell- Cupid leaned against the wall and slid down into a sitting position. The locket clutched tightly in her palm.

Her thoughts strayed from one thing to another but they never wandered far from her love. It wasn't until she looked back down to examine the simple necklace again that she noticed the hinges on the side of the heart.

' _Oh, it can open_.' She thought to herself as she fiddled with it.

She opened it, expecting nothing more than a photo displaying the daughter of the evil queen that she envied so much.

But it wasn't.

Instead it was a photo of her own smiling face.


	2. To Wake a Cupid

The castleteria was bustling with activity as everyone sought out seats with their friends and poked through the food options.

Cupid's mind couldn't be further from food though. Her appetite had completely vanished after the locket discovery the night before. She found herself aimlessly wandering around the large room, dodging the rushing people and scanning the many faces for Dexter. Luckily, Cerise had offered the pinkette a seat beside her; which Cupid graciously accepted.

"Hey there, Cerise!" Cedar said cheerfully, taking a seat on the other side of Cerise. "Hi, Cupid."

Cupid was too caught up in examining her surroundings to reply, causing Cerise to glance at her curiously.

"Cupid?" Cerise asked. When she still didn't respond Cerise lightly tapped on her shoulder, causing Cupid to jerk out of her trance.

"W-what?"

"I said, 'Hi'." Cedar said, laughingly; obviously not annoyed by Cupid's absentmindedness.

"Oh. Sorry, Cedar. Hi." Cupid gave a slight wave, the various silver bracelets on her wrist clinking together. She still couldn't seem to force herself to focus but she readjusted in her seat to face Cerise and Cedar anyway.

"Something wrong?" Cerise questioned.

"No. Why do you ask?" She knew exactly why Cerise was asking.

"You just seem kinda' out of it today."

"Really? I didn't think so. I actually think I've been pretty alert today."

Cerise pushed her plate back to give her enough room to lean her elbow on the table. "You've been running into people, tripping, and creepily staring at everyone all day." She deadpanned.

Cedar giggled a little.

Cupid knew she had been distracted this morning but she had no idea she had been that out of it. Warmth of embarrassment filled her cheeks as she looked away from her two friends.

"It's okay, Cupid. We've all had those days." Cedar gave her a thumbs up and quickly turned her attention to the full tray in front of her.

Cerise simply nodded in agreement with the wooden girl and resumed tearing apart her steak, leaving Cupid to her thoughts.

The goddess placed her elbow on the table and leaned her chin into her palm, the exhaustion from last night finally kicking in. She figured that resting her eyes for a couple minutes wouldn't hurt anything so she let her thick lashes flutter closed. Just for a minute.

* * *

"Cupid?"

A finger repeatedly poked Cupid's back, stopped for a minute, then resumed poking her.

Cupid tried to open her eyes but the grogginess was too much. "Blondie." She mumbled, still half asleep. "I don't want to go outside again." She swatted the air around her lazily. "If you stole something else I don't want to know."

"What?"

The familiar voice (Which was definitely NOT Blondie) caused Cupid's eyes to shoot open as she immediately sat up, only to have the back of her head collide with something equally solid.

"Ow!"

She quickly looked over her shoulder and was horrified- but not surprised- so see Dexter with both his hands clasped over his forehead, wincing in pain.

"Dexter!" She exclaimed, standing up from the table and crouching beside him in concern. "I'm sorry!"

He sucked air in through his teeth, as one would do in pain, but smiled nevertheless. "It's okay. I shouldn't have been standing there."

She looked around the castleteria; which was now empty and dim, making it obvious that lunch was over a while ago.

"Did I oversleep?" The question was directed more toward herself than Dexter.

Dexter stood up straight, still rubbing his head. "Yeah. Maddie was going to wake you up but Cerise said you seemed tired so we should let you sleep." He explained.

She was beginning to feel like her situation couldn't get any worse when she noticed the dry trail of drool that had formed from the corner of her lips down to her chin. With a slight yelp, she quickly wiped it away.

MHe simply smiled at her, giving her the hope that maybe he didn't notice. But his gaze easily slipped from her face down to her chest. She had to double check his line of vision but there was no doubt; he was definitely looking at her chest.

Her heart felt like it stopped beating.

And within two seconds she could have sworn that her face was pinker than her hair.

It was an indescribable moment of endless thoughts and curiosities, all running through her head at once. Should she be flattered? Or offended? How would someone normally react to this? Looking at a girls chest is a rude thing for someone to do, right? But what if it was someone's crush that did it?

"I have a necklace just like that." He innocently said, not noticing the array of emotions that were flashing on Cupid's face.

All the thoughts stopped. And her heart probably stopped again too.

Cupid didn't know what she expected him to say but that definitely wasn't it. "W… What?" She was too confused to even correct the weak tone in her voice.

He pointed at the locket that was still hanging from her neck. "That necklace. I have one just like it." He repeated.

She numbly looked down to see the silver locket, glinting back at her.

It took a moment to sink in but once it did she thought she was going to scream. Hadn't she taken that off in the hallway last night? Or maybe she hadn't. She couldn't recall and her brain was way too full to go memory-digging right now.

"O-oh... Oh! This?" She wrapped her hand around the heart shaped part of the jewelry, hoping to prevent Dexter from looking too closely. "It's just an old thing a friend gave me. It's nothing. Nothing at all." She knew she just sounded weird on the last 'Nothing at all' part.

"That's nice." He nodded once and looked back to her face, the same smile lighting his eyes. "Which friend was it?"

She opened her mouth to say something (Probably a random name that doesn't really exist) when Blondie quickly walked into the room.

"Hey, Cupid, guess what I fou-" The blonde paused when she saw Dexter.

She looked at Cupid. Then at Dexter. Then at Cupid. Then back at Dexter.

"Ohhhh- I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt. I can see you two need some privacy." She winked at Cupid and began slowly backing out of the room. Cupid could feel the color drain out of her complexion.

"Feel free to go back to your business." Blondie gave Cupid a thumbs up, making Dexter lower his eyebrows at her in a confused manner.

"Privacy." Blondie cooed as she disappeared behind the wall leading to the hallway.

Cupid had nothing she could say or any strength she could muster up. She was too mortified at everything that had happened this morning.

"Privacyyyy." Blondie whispered from the hallway.

Cupid facepalmed.

Dexter looked back at Cupid with a questioning expression, as if she could explain what that was about. But of course, she couldn't, so she simply shrugged; almost wishing she could shrug off this whole conversation.

"Well, anyway. Sorry for startling you when I woke you up." His smile returned.

"Oh, no. That's okay. I'm sorry for head-slamming you." She said somewhat quietly. "So sorry."

"No, it's not your fault." He laughed slightly, itching the back of his neck and glancing around the room. He suddenly seemed to be avoiding eye contact. But who could blame him? She had proven herself to not be very graceful in either personality or motion. Not to mention, Blondie was being herself.

"We probably need to get going. Everyone else is probably waiting for us." He said as he did what appeared to be a shrug.

She nodded, not knowing what to say or if she should say anything at all. But he had already turned to exit the room, leaving her no time to decide.

MShe almost wished she could call out to him and ask him about the locket. He obviously recognized it; Blondie obviously stole it from his room; and it obviously had a picture of Cupid in it. What was she supposed to make of that?

But if she asked him about it then that would show that it was stolen and that Cupid had snooped around with it. That wasn't the kind of reputation she wanted. Especially with Dexter.

The best thing she could do for the time being was wait. But the glimmer of hope the necklace gave her for her possible future with Dexter was almost too good to wait for.


	3. Just a Late Night Dance

Cupid sat in front of her dresser mirror, carefully brushing the long, pastel curls that were draped over her shoulder.

Blondie was sitting at the desk across from her, working on a hat she wanted to use as a gift for one of her friends. She was hoping she could finish her crafting before they went to sleep but it was already pitch black outside and both of them were exhausted from discussing Cupid's conversation with Dexter earlier that day.

"Can't you finish it tomorrow?" The pinkette asked, drowsiness apparent in her voice.

Ignoring her friend's question, Blondie pointed toward a small pile of flowers, "Can you pass me that blue one?"

Cupid handed Blondie the light blue flower that she had pointed toward. "Good choice."

"Thanks. I thought it would compliment the pink ones nicely." Blondie explained, not taking her eye off the delicate string she was using to stitch all the flowers together.

Cupid looked down at Blondie's dress, noticing that the flowers were the same shade of blue as Blondie's dress and the pink ones were the same shade of pink as her own dress.

"I guess our dresses compliment each other nicely then." Cupid laughed as she stood up and jokingly twirled, her dress lifting slightly off her slim figure at the sudden motion.

Blondie rolled her eyes, equally jokingly, and scoffed. "Oh, please. We compliment each other nicely with or without the dresses."

Cupid stopped twirling so she could look at Blondie, but the blonde still had her attention glued to her work with the flowers. Cupid couldn't help but smile softly; even if Blondie couldn't see it.

"Of course we do." The pinkette mused quietly as she went back to spinning across their bedroom floor. She actually felt gracefully at ease when she was moving this way.

"Cupid, I'm trying to finish this." Blondie laughed.

"So?"

"You're distracting me."

"Let me guess. You want it to be 'just right'?"

Blondie laughed lightly again. "Yes. I do. I still need to fill in the middle."

Cupid twirled over to the desk Blondie was working at and snatched up the circular string of flowers.

"Hey!" Blondie reached to take it back but Cupid had already spun out of reach.

Whilst Blondie stuck out her bottom lip and shot her friend a mock glare, Cupid placed the flowers on her head, like a crown made purely from nature. "See? It's just right as it is!"

"Okay. Very funny. But I need to finish it." Blondie pretended to be serious but Cupid could hear the light-hearted tone in her voice.

Cupid gave one final twirl before coming to a stop. "I'll give it back in exchange for something else." She said, placing her hands firmly on her hips.

Blondie raised one eyebrow and cocked her head slightly. "What do you want in return then?" She played along.

Cupid grinned and held out one of her hands toward her roommate. "You have to dance with me." She teased.

Blondie sat in silence for a short moment before her soft, pink lips spread into a gentle smile. With a glint of humor in her eyes, she stood up from her chair and met Cupid in the center of the room.

"Well, who am I to turn away a goddess?" Blondie teased back as she bowed in a princely fashion. She cleared her throat and attempted to imitate a man's voice, holding out her hand toward the pinkette. "May I have this dance, milady?"

Cupid pretended to blush as she pressed one of her hands to her chest and used the other to take Blondie's extended hand. "Why, of course!"

Blondie stood up straight and pulled Cupid close, both of them starting to slowly twirl across the soft rug that lay underneath their feet.

Cupid giggled at their own playfulness and Blondie laughingly smiled back.

"Oh my, Mr. Lockes!" Cupid said, using her best British accent. "You're quite the dancer!"

Blondie spun Cupid around in a particularly fast circle and made her best attempt at a dip. "I could say the same for you, Ms. Cupid." Blondie tried to pull a sly-brow but it ended up looking odd on her delicate features.

Cupid flashed a toothy smile in response and pulled Blondie into another spiral of spinning. Their bare feet quietly thudded across the floor as their gracefully ungraceful dance continued.

Cupid almost tripped on Blondie's feet multiple times, but Blondie kept her standing. Or kept her upright at the very least.

"Now for the finale!" Blondie announced.

Before Cupid could react, Blondie swooped her up bridal-style. But Blondie, only being slightly taller than Cupid, couldn't support the pinkette's weight and ended up toppling over, both of them crashing to the floor.

There was a few seconds of silence.

And then the two girls burst out laughing.

Blondie looked at Cupid, who was sprawled out on the floor beside her; laughing that melodious laugh of hers; but she couldn't manage to say anything without laughing herself to tears.

And the floor is where they remained for a good while.

It wasn't until Apple knocked on their door, asking them to be a little more quiet, that the laughter finally started to die down.

Cupid let out a sigh of satisfaction, not taking her gaze off the ceiling. "Well, I guess you followed your end of the deal." She reached up to remove her flower crown but Blondie quickly grabbed her wrist to stop her.

"No. It's alright. I don't want it back."

Cupid looked at Blondie, who was smiling sweetly back at her.

"You look just right in it."

Cupid just stared at her friend for a couple moments but it didn't take all that long for an equally nice smile to spread across her own lips.

"Thank you, Blondie."

Blondie just gave a nod and rolled onto her back, staring into the ceiling as if it were a sky full of stars. Cupid did the same.

The love expert felt so peaceful that she could have sworn she was going to drift off into a dream without even falling asleep. But right after she closed her eyes, the memory of the locket floated into her train of thought.

She quickly reopened her eyes and glanced at Blondie.

Cupid still hadn't told her friend about what she had found inside the stolen jewelry. She didn't know how Blondie would react. She was almost worried that Blondie would accidentally let it slip to Dexter and the whole thing would blow up in her face.

Blondie glanced at Cupid out of the corner of her eye, noticing that Cupid was staring at her. "What?" She asked, turning her head fully.

Cupid blinked a couple times. "Um..."

At Cupid's hesitance, Blondie slid her hand across the floor and took hold of her friend's hand. "You can tell me anything." She gave the pinkette's hand a reassuring squeeze.

Cupid nodded, returning the hold on her friends hand. "Well, about that locket you gave me yesterday."

Blondie gave a firm nod to show she was listening.

"It can open. So you can put a picture in it." Cupid began to explain, "And I opened it when I was in the hallway." She pulled her hand from Blondie's and rolled onto her stomach, feeling she could better think when her head was upright.

"And?" Blondie persisted.

"Well…" The young goddess bit her lip and glanced away from Blondie's deep, blue eyes. Figuring it would be easier to just show her friend instead of trying to explain it, Cupid pushed herself off the floor and crossed the room back to her dresser.

Blondie sat up and watched Cupid retrieve the necklace. "What about it?"

Cupid walked back over and folded her legs into a comfortable position. Then she popped the silver heart open and held it out to Blondie, displaying it's contents.

Blondie looked carefully at it. Her eyebrows quickly furrowing in some sort of confusion.

"Is that-"

"Me?" Cupid interrupted, already relieved to share her discovery with someone else. "Yeah. I was surprised too."

Blondie took the jewelry from her and looked closer, as if the photo would suddenly change into someone else if she stared long enough. "But I thought it was for Raven?"

"So did I. But this is good, right?" Cupid was even exciting herself with the possibilities this opened up.

Blondie stared at it a moment longer before handing it back to Cupid. "Maybe."

Cupid lowered her thin brows. "What do you mean by 'maybe'?"

"Maybe it's just a friendship gift. Boys can give those too. And you've helped him out a lot so it would make sense."

Cupid's smile faded slightly. Blondie's words were slowly registering in her mind and, though they made sense, she wished they hadn't.

Her memories of all the times she had helped Dexter or given him advice for Raven flashed through her mind and all the times he had said 'Thank you'. There were so many times.

She looked down at the locket that was draped across her palm. Maybe this was nothing more than another 'Thank you'.

Blondie let out a sigh as she stood up. "But I wouldn't worry about it. You'll only make yourself sick over it."

Cupid simply nodded, too deep in thought to give a verbal reply.

"We should get some sleep, okay?"

Cupid nodded again and stood up as well.

Blondie was right. This was out of her control. So constantly wondering about it wouldn't do her, or anyone else, any good. But, though the situation was out of her control, wasn't worrying also out of her hands? She couldn't help staring at Dexter during class, or dreaming about him when she couldn't sleep at night, or hoping that he was coming to talk to her every time he passed by.

Could she simply stop worrying at any time she chose to?

Or would she even want to?


	4. Stuck

"Hi there!"

A grinning, wooden face belonging to Cedar Wood leaned in front of Cupid and waved, the pink-haired girl jerking back a bit in response.

"Oh!" Cupid swiftly closed the open sketchbook that was resting on her lap, hiding the pages that consisted of nothing but endless sketches of Dexter. "H-hi, Cedar."

"Mind if I sit?" The wooden girl asked, gesturing toward the empty bench space beside Cupid.

Cupid looked at the bench and back at Cedar, then proceeded to give her a hesitant nod.

Cedar turned around and carefully tucked her dress along the back of her legs before she sat. Her face was beaming with happiness, which wasn't exactly new for her. "What's up?"

Assuming she wasn't going to have the chance to use it again with Cedar present, Cupid slipped her sketchbook back into her pastel pink bag. "Nothing really. You know, just hanging out… and.. stuff along those lines."

Cedar gave her friend a crooked smile and raised an eyebrow. "What 'stuff along those lines' are you referring to?"

Cupid wanted to slap herself a bit but she shook it off. She needed to make up an answer, then an excuse to leave. And she needed to do it fast.

At the very least, she could be thankful that she didn't always have to tell the truth like her wooden friend.

"Oh, you know, the usual." She started, already aware at how badly she was failing. "Watching people and… other things."

Cedar laughed and placed a hand on Cupid's shoulder. "Okay, Cupid. Don't hurt yourself."

Cupid's shoulders drooped.

"Hey, guys." Raven approached their bench and gave a single flick of her wrist as a form of a wave.

At the sight of Raven, Cupid instantly bit her lip.

It's not like Cupid disliked her. Raven and her were good friends and she didn't want to change that just because they happened to like the same boy. But, she would be lying if she said Raven didn't complicate the locket situation even further.

Cedar waved back to the young queen and stood up from the bench, immediately striking a conversation.

Cupid was about to disappear into deep thought whilst Raven and Cedar spoke, when she heard Cedar say something that seemed to be about a school dance of some sort. At the mention of this, the pinkette immediately redirected her attention back to their words.

"If Ashlynn can't do the centerpieces then I'm sure there would be someone else who would love to." Cedar said, receiving a nod from Raven.

"Well, what about you? You like art, right?" Raven asked, crossing her arms across her chest.

Manners far from her mind, Cupid quickly stood up, interjecting herself into their conversation. "I'm sorry. What are you two talking about?"

Cedar looked at Cupid with a confused expression, as if she had already told her what they were talking about. "The Winter Dance?" She said in a questioning tone, studying Cupid's face to see if her answer was registering.

When Cupid's genuinely unknowing expression didn't change, Raven took a step forward. "There was a meeting about it yesterday." She added.

Cedar was quick to reply on Cupid's behalf. "She had fallen asleep in the castleteria that day."

At the mention of this, an understanding smile brightened Raven's dark lips. "Oh. Well, there's a Winter Dance coming up on December 24." Raven clarified. "Most of the decorating and other jobs to help out with it are already taken but there's still centerpiece design, if you want."

Cupid looked at the floor as she crossed her arms, thinking about what this dance would mean and whether she should take Raven's offer or not.

It didn't take long before she made up her mind and looked back up toward her friends, an easy smile lighting her delicate features. "I'd love to! I'll get working on them as soon as I can."

"Hexcellent! Thanks, Cupid. It would be a big help."

"No problem. Anything to help out." Cupid tucked one of her curls behind her ear, thankful for the positive change in her own mood.

"Great. So I guess I'll see you later then." Raven placed her hand on her hip and gave Cupid a wink before turning to walk back down the hall; her long, dark hair swaying slightly with each step.

Cedar waved a farewell to Cupid and took off down the hallway as well, most likely wanting to continue her conversation with Raven.

Cupid sighed to herself as she watched them leave. But, unlike most of the sighing she had been doing recently, it was a relaxed sigh.

What better way to distract herself from this necklace confusion than by helping out her friends with a school dance? It would not only be fun, but also productive. Perfect!

* * *

Cupid had been working on the snowflake themed decorations for almost an hour when she decided to take a break. The desk in front of her was a mess, her hands were beginning to ache from holding the scissors for so long, and her legs had fallen asleep for the fourth time. If that wasn't a sign that she needed to rest, then she didn't know what was.

She leaned back as much as the stiff, wooden chair she was seated in would let her (Which wasn't much) and closed her eyes for a moment.

A Winter Dance seemed like a fun idea. An evening full of dancing, dresses, friends and partying sounded like a wonderful way to spend a Christmas Eve.

Especially if Dexter was going to be there.

She winced.

Why had she let that thought slip into her mind? Couldn't she go one day without thinking about him? Maybe she would have to start pinching herself every time he came up in her thoughts.

Despite the agitation it caused, that thought did remind her of something that needed taken care of.

Cupid reopened her eyes and glanced at the closet door, the much-pondered locket hanging from the doorknob.

The fact that she now had a distraction from the mental mess that single piece of jewelry had caused didn't mean she was distracted from the actual necklace itself.

She knew she had to take it back to Dexter's room. He may have already noticed it was gone by now but if he hadn't then she needed to stop putting it off and try to return it before he did.

And there was no time like the present.

It took all the willpower she had in her to push herself out of her chair and cross over to the necklace.

That little thing had provoked so much excitement yet so much questioning. Even after she put it back it wouldn't make the the curiosity go away.

She gently picked up the piece and opened the clean, polished heart for the last time.

She never got tired of the warm sensation that seemed to fill her every time she saw herself in it. Every time she saw herself in the locket that belonged to Dexter Charming. It gave her chills.

* * *

Once she had confirmed that Dexter wasn't in his room, Cupid slowly made her way to the boys dormitory.

The closer she got, the more her pace slowed. She wanted to be sure to give herself plenty of time to change her mind. Just in case.

But once she had finally reached Dexter's bedroom door she regretted having not gone even slower.

So many possibilities threatened to scare her out of it but she shrugged off each one. It's now or never, she figured, placing her hand on the knob. She didn't hesitate to begin turning it.

Then she paused.

What was that sound? Footsteps?

She quickly looked to the left and then to the right only to find Sparrow and Hunter coming down the hallway.

The worries seemed to break through her mental walls of defense as her mind suddenly began racing, trying to think of excuses as to why she couldn't go in when really the only logical conclusion was to go in.

Cupid slapped her hand over her own mouth to keep herself from gasping as she quickly turned the doorknob the rest of the way and rushed in, quietly closing it behind her.

She pressed her back to the door and stayed perfectly silent, trying carefully to follow the trail of the footsteps so she could wait for them to pass.

The steps stopped and she could hear the two of them talking a bit, though she couldn't quite make out what they were saying.

As soon as she was starting to relax the slightest bit, the steps resumed. But, to her horror, instead of passing by the door, they approached the door!

She felt she had just suffered a heart attack when the doorknob began to turn.

Without thinking about it, Cupid dived for the open closet and pulled it closed most of the way just in time for Hunter to enter the bedroom.

She mentally scolded herself for forgetting that Dexter and Hunter were roommates. Therefore, rushing into this room had been the wrong move.

But, apparently oblivious to anyone being in there besides himself, the future huntsman casually closed the door behind him and walked out of view, whistling a lighthearted tune.

She didn't know what she was going to do but she knew she had to get out of there. She just had to wait for Hunter to leave and hope he didn't open the closet.

He couldn't stay in his room for all THAT long….

Hopefully.


	5. Expect the Expected

It was late.

At least that's what Cupid assumed.

It had grown much darker in the small space and it definitely felt like she had been in there for quite some time. But she didn't fully know since she had fallen asleep after only half an hour of sitting there. Then again, she was only assuming it had been half an hour. Counting minutes on one's fingers wasn't very accurate, after all.

Nothing had happened and, despite it being Dexter's closet, it's not like it was entertaining in any way.

Other than a couple rogue shirts strewn across the wooden floor, it was pretty clean and organized. Not to mention, it smelled of both the outdoors and clean laundry.

Now that she thought about it; it was actually pretty comfortable in there. No wonder she had fallen asleep.

Cupid was just beginning to look on the bright side of her situation (Not that there was much of a bright side) when she heard a door close.

It startled her at first but she quickly regained her sharpness and inched closer to the crack she had left open in the closet door, trying to peek out at the door that led to the hall.

No sign of anyone. Or any movement at all for that matter.

Not trusting it, she pressed her palm against the closet door, trying to shift her weight into a more comfortable position so she could get a better look.

Then the door she was leaning on was unexpectedly flung open.

The goddess didn't even have time to be horrified before she slammed into the floor, having had her support so quickly pulled away from her. The instant her head hit the floor, her vision became nothing but a large blur and a loud ringing filled her ears.

It hurt.

Or at least it DID.

All feeling in her body had quickly vanished, leaving nothing but an odd tingling sensation in her fingertips.

A loud voice (More like a slurred murmur, to her) was heard and then she could feel numb pressure being applied to her legs and shoulders as she was lifted off the floor. Her eyes seemingly closing all on their own.

The somewhat panicked voice resumed talking whilst she was carried across the room. It didn't take long before another voice joined the first one. Both voices shared the same level of alarm, the only difference in tone being the first voice was quite obviously male while the second voice was female.

The dazed pinkette tried to open her mouth, to say she was okay or something. Anything. But she couldn't move, let alone talk.

Her body was gently laid across something soft and it immediately turned the numb feeling in her back into a painful tingle, much like one would have when their foot had fallen asleep.

Cupid's eyes fluttered open momentarily, the blur clearing just enough for her to make out the silhouettes of Raven and Dexter before everything faded to a cool black.

* * *

Cupid immediately sat up straight, as if awakening from a nightmare, only to find herself in her own bedroom, in her own bed.

Was that whole thing just a dream? A sudden, sharp pain on one half of her head quickly answered that question.

She winced slightly and glanced around the room.

Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary except for an ice pack on the dresser beside her.

It was only when she looked over toward Blondie's bed that she realized what else was different.

There was Dexter; sleeping in a chair beside her own bed; his elbow propped up on the armrest and his cheek resting against his fist. He looked peaceful yet he still appeared to be exhausted in some way, as if he was having a strenuous dream of some sort. It almost made her want to reach over and pull him in for a warm hug.

But instead, Cupid found herself smiling warmly to no one in particular. She couldn't help it. Her heart was fluttering about like a butterfly in a cage at the thought of Dexter worrying over her.

Had he been sitting there this whole time?

As she pulled her bed sheets up to her chest, enjoying the warmth of the fabric and the equally nice warmth radiating from her heart, she caught a glimpse of the bright moon that almost seemed to be peeking in through the window.

This was one of those rare, but cherished, moments when she could simply relax and enjoy the quiet of her own thoughts and the peacefulness of the room around her.

Sure, her head was still throbbing a bit but somehow it managed to be worth it.

That is; until she realized that she didn't have the locket with her anymore.

Immediately feeling panicked, the young goddess sat up and looked around quickly, expecting to see it laying beside her on the bed as long as she could look hard enough.

Had she dropped it when she hit her head? Did they know that she had had the necklace? Was it still in Dexter's and Hunter's bedroom?

Her frantic search didn't last long before she swore she felt a pair of eyes staring into her back. And she was certain she knew exactly who they belonged to. But she hadn't even heard him wake up.

"Are you okay?" Dexter asked, sounding a bit tired.

At first the pinkette paused but, not having the energy to be worried anymore, Cupid slowly sat back, leaning against the pillow that was between her and the headboard.

All she managed was a nod.

He blinked a few times and watched her face very closely but she pretended not to notice and continued to study the rooms already familiar features.

It was a few moments before he finally spoke up again, "You fell pretty hard..."

Cupid hardly knew how to respond to that so she simply nodded again. If she hadn't known any better, she would have thought that was a metaphor for how hard she had fallen in love with Dexter.

"I'm… really sorry. About your head.."

She almost wanted to giggle out loud at the adorable awkwardness in his voice but she rightly decided against it.

She shook her head firmly as she finally looked at him. "No, no, It's not your fault. I shouldn't have-"

"Been in my closet?" The prince interrupted. His question plunged the both of them into another long moment of silence. Awkward silence.

How was she supposed to even begin to explain this?

Cupid bit her lip and resumed avoiding eye contact.

Her gaze remained fixed on the wall opposite of Dexter for quite some time until a small item was placed on her lap, to which she hesitantly looked down.

There it was. The necklace. That beautifully horrid necklace. It was almost like one of those moments in a scary movie where you just want to gasp in horror and look away.

But she didn't.

She just kept staring at it.

"You've already found it so you might as well keep it now.. It was meant to be yours anyway." Dexter said, scratching the back of his head in that nervous kind of way he seemed to do.

Cupid didn't know how to take that. Her roommates previous words about how it could easily be a gift of friendship hovered around in her mind.

Out of the corner of her eye, she peeked at the boy who was sitting beside her.

Cupid was just now noticing how well the moonlight illuminated his already flawless features.

Even without the moonlight, everything about him seemed to be especially made for her taste.

His chin; his hair; his physique; his lips; and most of all, those eyes. She could get lost in those eyes for the rest of eternity and never get tired of them. They were like a clear sky that could swallow your heart up if you stared into them for too long.

Dexter looked down toward the floor. Now it appeared to be his turn to avoid eye contact.

Cupid snapped out of her fantasies and shook her head. "Oh… Um, t-thank you," She quickly scooped the locket into her palm and pretended to exam it, as if it were the first time.

"Where did you find it anyway?" Dexter asked, still not taking his gaze off of his own shoes.

Cupid felt a twinge of pain. But it was more of an emotional pain than physical. She almost felt as if Dexter was blaming her for stealing it, even though he had quite obviously assumed otherwise. Maybe it was just the guilt eating away at her.

"H.. Hm?"

"Blondie told me what had happened."

And it was in that moment that Cupid wanted to fly out the window and crash into a lake.

How could Blondie do such a thing!?

Taking Cupid's rapid change in expressions into account, Dexter clarified his statement, "She said you found it outside and wanted to return it..?"

Cupid froze for a moment, letting the words sink in, and then a wave of relief swept over her. "Oooh! Yeah!" An obnoxiously loud laugh slipped out of her mouth, "Of course! I found it. Outside. Then I returned it." She knew she should just shut up at this point but she couldn't seem to. "I returned it to your room. That's why I was in there. And why I was hiding. So I could return your necklace. I like returning things in secret… Apparently."

Dexter smiled his charmingly crooked smile, not appearing to suspect the pinkette of anything malicious. And though she was happy this all appeared to have smoothed itself out, she couldn't help but feel a bit guilty and misleading.

Silence fell over the room and the two of them sat for quite some time, just staring down into their own laps and fidgeting with their fingers.

The moon was beaming brighter than ever at that point. Dexter glanced up at Cupid.

He hadn't really seen how delicate and graceful she looked until then. Her soft, pink curls cascading down her slim shoulders; her pale, blue eyes carefully looking over her petite hands. She truly looked the part of a goddess.

He almost didn't realize that he had been staring at her in time for him to look away before Cupid noticed.

At his sudden motion, she quickly looked up and innocently blinked a couple times in his direction before returning her gaze back to her own hands.

Dexter looked at her hands as well, his eyes locking on the necklace that she was repeatedly turning over in her palms.

"Hey, Dex?"

Dexter pried his eyes off of the locket and focused on her face, waiting for her to go on.

Cupid remained quiet for a few seconds (Though it felt like a few minutes) before continuing. Even when she did, it came out as more of a whisper, "Why did you get me this necklace?" She was shocked by the question that escaped her own lips. It almost scared her. But it wasn't the question itself that scared her. But rather the possible answer.

Silence filled the room, once again; much to Cupid's dismay.

Dexter opened his mouth ever so slightly, words on the edge of his lips. But he quickly resumed his hesitant state. What more pressure could this boy put on her?

Cupid returned her line of vision to the soft fabric that was draped over her lap, her facial features displaying her regret in the form of a forlorn stare.

Dexter took note of this and hurriedly answered, not wanting to upset his friend. But he couldn't seem to keep his words from tripping on themselves. "Well, you've done so- I mean, you have helped a.. lot… Your advice was really good and-"

"You wanted to say thank you?"

Dexter paused.

Was it just his imagination or did her voice crack when she said that? He sat there, frozen, staring into her face for the next several moments.

Cupid didn't move except for the occasional fidgeting of her fingers.

Dexter wasn't sure if she could see him due to her head position, but he gave a slow nod in response anyway.

She traced her thumb across the front of the locket and flashed a weak smile. She had been telling herself that it was merely a gift of friendship ever since Blondie proposed the possibility. But in the back of her mind she had believed it was something more the whole time.

She was wrong.

Dexter, apparently uncomfortable with the unexplainable tension in the air, cleared his throat slightly.

The pinkette glanced at him, the same smile plastered on her lips. Though she wasn't sure if it was convincing or not because it was far from real.

"I really need to, uh... Get back to my room now… Ya' know. Curfew."

She nodded. She couldn't do anything else without crying.

How had she allowed herself to get so disappointed?

Dexter stood for a moment and then awkwardly made his way to the door, tripping once on the way there.

After another bout of stumbling, he had finally opened the door and was ready to step out into the hall when a hushed voice stopped him.

"You're welcome."

He looked back at Cupid to respond, but she had already laid back down and was facing the opposite wall; cutting off any further conversation.

He felt the need to apologize. Or say SOMETHING, at least. But he couldn't even grasp what it was he thought he needed to apologize for.

Nevertheless, he found himself smiling.

Never did a day go by that he wasn't thankful that he had a friend like Cupid.

But on the goddess' side of it, there was that lingering ache.

How predictable this all was. In fact, she had already predicted it. It was her heart that was blindsided this time. And as the daughter of Eros, her heart should never be allowed to fool itself. Even for the sake of love.


End file.
